Monday 17th December 2012 (Series 67, 3rd QF)

[Graeme Cole]

Countdown recap for Monday 17 December 2012.

Welcome to the third quarter-final of series 67, the winner of which will play David Barnard on Thursday.

I was wondering, when was the last time Countdown had an all-female quarter-final? I looked back through the wiki, expecting to find one maybe three or four years ago. It turns out you have to go all the way back to series 43 in 2000.

This episode is also the first Countdown to be recorded in HD. My digital terrestrial setup can't receive HD, but I'm sure I can see a difference anyway. Perhaps it's the new cameras they're using, or they light the studio differently or something. They were still at Granada at this point though, and because Granada was built before there was even colour television, let alone HD, the production staff had to do all their mysterious productiony things from a van in the car park rather than the gallery upstairs. I can see now why they're moving to MediaCity - say what you like about its poncy CamelCase branding, at least you can make a programme in a television studio without needing to bring most of the studio with you.

Anyway, on with the show.

C1: #6 seed Tia Corkish (8 wins, 697 points) is a development support officer from Bristol, who is originally from Canada. She became an octochamp in October, with a top score of 108.
C2: #3 seed Heather Styles (8 wins, 737 points) is from Sevenoaks and is an assistant editor at a publishing company. In November she set what is still the series' highest score of 114 on her way to eight wins. Heather is also raising funds for Providence Supporting People, a charity that helps people suffering from drug addiction.
DC: Susie Dent and Alistair McGowan.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.

R01: G D T U O N F E I
R02: R T S T E O E A S
R03: P D H O I S A G O
R04: T Q D M U E I E P
R05: 25, 50, 9, 8, 9, 6. Target: 927.
TTT: CHINACUP - "This little monkey sounds like it's a fan of coffee."
R06: O A O S D F R X A
R07: T F H E I M B O U
R08: G M B C E A I A E
R09: N S T I E G L E S
R10: 25, 3, 4, 9, 3, 6. Target: 113.
TTT: ICANROLL - "I can roll out the tunes using this type of device."
R11: T L S A I P W E O
R12: C D N M E A E U W
R13: L R T O E R P A E
R14: 50, 8, 3, 7, 2, 6. Target: 812.
R15: H U G N O S U M O (conundrum)


And now a brief interlude before our main feature:

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Enjoy the show.

Round 1: G D T U O N F E I

C1: TONGUED (7)
C2: TONGUED (7)
OT: UNGIFTED (8)
Score: 7–7 (max 8)

Both our quarter-finalists start off with a seven, but unseen by everyone was UNGIFTED.


Round 2: R T S T E O E A S

C1: TOASTERS (8)
C2: TOASTERS (8)
DC: TEASERS (7) RESTATES (misdeclared as 7)
OT: ESTREATS (8) ROSETTES (8) TETROSES (8)
Score: 15–15 (max 16)

Eights this time. Susie also finds an eight in RESTATES, but thinks it's a seven.

In law, if you leave something as security for bail, but then you do a runner, the judge might enforce that you forfeit whatever you left as security. In that case the judge would be said to ESTREAT it. Alistair seems convinced there's some kind of chemical nine like "steroates" there. There isn't, but there is a chemical eight TETROSES. A TETROSE is the name given to any monosaccharide sugar with four carbon atoms in a molecule.


Round 3: P D H O I S A G O

C1: HOOPS (5)
C2: HOODIAS (7)
DC: GOODISH (7) POGOS (5)
OT: GODSHIP (7)
Score: 15–22 (max 23)

First blood to Heather with an excellent spot in HOODIAS, which in common with a lot of obscure words is a type of plant.


Round 4: T Q D M U E I E P

C1: EMPTIED (7)
C2: IMPUTED (7)
DC: QUIETED (7)
Score: 22–29 (max 30)

Three sevens all accounted for, and Heather is still in front.


Round 5: 25, 50, 9, 8, 9, 6. Target: 927.

C1: 927. (9+9)*50+25+8-6 (10)
C2: -
Score: 32–29 (max 40)

That's the problem with two large - there are so many possibilities to try that the correct one is easy to miss. Tia spots it though, and that puts her three in front.


Teatime teaser: CHINACUP -> CAPUCHIN


Round 6: O A O S D F R X A

C1: ROADS (5)
C2: ROADS (5)
DC: DOORS (5) ROODS (5)
OT: OXFORDS (7)
Score: 37–34 (max 47)

Some in the spoiler thread spotted FARADS - the FARAD is the unit of capacitance in electronic circuits. But the max was OXFORDS, which in their only pluralisable sense are shoes.


Round 7: T F H E I M B O U

C1: THIEF (5)
C2: BOTHIE (6)
Score: 37–40 (max 53)

Heather regains the advantage with BOTHIE, which was a hut used by farm workers to shelter from bad weather.


Round 8: G M B C E A I A E

C1: IMAGE (5)
C2: MAGIC (5)
DC: BECAME (6)
OT: AGAMIC (6) CAMBIA (6)
Score: 42–45 (max 59)

A six BECAME apparent to Alistair, but Tia and Heather find fives, and it's still a close game.


Round 9: N S T I E G L E S

C1: TINGLES (7)
C2: STEELING (8)
DC: SINGLETS (8)
OT: ELEGISTS (8) GLISTENS (8) SLEETING (8)
Score: 42–53 (max 67)

Another of those "what nine am I missing here" rounds. The answer is none, but Heather finds one of the eights.


Round 10: 25, 3, 4, 9, 3, 6. Target: 113.

C1: 113. (25+3)*4+(9-6)/3 (10)
C2: 113. (25+3)*4+(6+3)/9 (10)
Score: 52–63 (max 77)

Plenty of ways to solve this one.


Teatime teaser: ICANROLL -> CARILLON


Round 11: T L S A I P W E O

C1: PASTEL (6)
C2: APOSTLE (7)
DC: OPIATES (7) TOPSAIL (7)
OT: ATOPIES (7) ISOLATE (7) PELOTAS (7) PIOLETS (7) PISTOLE (7) PLATIES (7) TALIPES (7)
Score: 52–70 (max 84)

Heather goes further in front and takes a commanding lead with four rounds to go. TALIPES is a useful alternative to the invalid PILATES^ - it's the medical term for club foot.


Round 12: C D N M E A E U W

C1: WEANED (6)
C2: WEANED (6)
DC: UNMADE (6) ACUMEN (6) MENACED (7)
Score: 58–76 (max 91)

Sixes each, and Susie and Alistair find the only seven.

The Only Connect final was on tonight. No link though, because there's no Dave Taylor in it. Rules is rules.


Round 13: L R T O E R P A E

C1: parolee (misdeclared as 6)
C2: PAROLEE (7)
DC: OPERATE (7) PERORATE (8)
Score: 58–83 (max 99)

This is when Tia needed to pull something out of the bag, but sadly for her that thing was a misdeclared seven.

To PERORATE is to speak at length.


Round 14: 50, 8, 3, 7, 2, 6. Target: 812.

C1: 813. 50*2*8+7+6 (7)
C2: 813. 50*2*8+7+6 (7)
RR: 812. (50*8+6)*2 (10)
Score: 65–90 (max 109)

Both one away on the numbers, and Rachel gets it spot on thanks to some split multiplication. Heather has already won, but she now has the chance of getting her second century if she gets the conundrum...


Round 15: H U G N O S U M O

C2 buzzes on 1 second to say HUMONGOUS which is correct.
Final Score: 65–100 (max 119)

Boom.

Towards the end, Alistair McGowan tells the well-known joke about Canada - that it was called that because it was originally called CND until a Canadian spelt it out "C, eh; N, eh; D, eh". Tia steals the show, though, when Alistair asks her if she's heard that joke before and she goes "eh?"

Tomorrow Jack will be recapping the last quarter-final between Rose Boyle and Liam Shaw. The winner of that will play Paul James in Wednesday's semi-final. Then Heather faces David Barnard on Thursday, a match which is already being called by those in the know "a game of Countdown". And on Friday we'll know the winner of series 67.

So, this means my next recap will be the first episode of the eagerly-awaited 30th Anniversary Championship, between Tom Hargreaves and Nicki Sellars on Monday 7th January. See you then.


Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=67

[Heather Styles]

I am happy to confirm that the match on Thursday will indeed be a game of Countdown. No further comment.

[Mike Brown]

OT: PALTERER (8)

PALTERER (and its plural): sadly no longer valid.

[Graeme Cole]

OT: PALTERER (8)

PALTERER (and its plural): sadly no longer valid.

Cheers, fixed.